Ruling marks end of legal battles over collective bargaining law

The Wisconsin Supreme Court on Thursday upheld the 2011 law that effectively ended collective bargaining for most public workers, sparked massive protests and led to Republican Gov. Scott Walker's recall election and rise to national prominence.

The ruling also marks the end of the three-year legal fight over the union rights law, which prohibits public worker unions from collectively bargaining for anything beyond base wage increases based on inflation. A federal appeals court twice upheld the law as constitutional.

"No matter the limitations or 'burdens' a legislative enactment places on the collective bargaining process, collective bargaining remains a creation of legislative grace and not constitutional obligation," Justice Michael Gableman wrote for the majority.

The high court ruled in a lawsuit filed by the Madison teachers union and a union representing Milwaukee public workers. They had argued that the law, which came to be known as Act 10, violated workers' constitutional rights to free assembly and equal protection.

The law also requires public employees to contribute more toward their health insurance and pension costs. In a two-sentence statement Walker issued Thursday, he praised the ruling and claimed the law has saved taxpayers more than $3 billion - mostly attributable to schools and local governments saving more money because of the higher contributions.

"The power to run our schools, our local governments and our state government has again been affirmed to belong in the hands of the hardworking taxpayers, so I'm happy for the taxpayers of this state," Walker said.

Speaking to reporters at the Wisconsin State Fair, Walker said Act 10 has saved school districts and local governments billions of dollars, but the head of Milwaukee's teacher's union said the court's ruling simply deepens the wound for public workers.

"I wasn't surprised, but I was outraged on some levels, because this ruling confirms the attacks on working people, public sector employees," MTEA President Bob Peterson said.

Attorney Lester Pines, who represented the teachers union, said the decision was not unexpected given the conservative makeup of the court and critical comments the justices made during oral arguments.

But Pines said the length of the legal fight gave unions time to prepare for operating in a post-collective bargaining environment.

"The governor's desire to destroy the public employee unions has failed," Pines said. "We'll just see new approaches to dealing with employers by the unions. Those will become evident as we go forward."

Walker introduced the proposal shortly after taking office in 2011, a move that was met with fierce resistance from teachers, other public workers and their supporters who flooded the Capitol for weeks in an effort to block the bill's passage. Democratic state senators fled the state for two weeks in a failed attempt to block the bill's passage.

The law bars automatic withdrawals from members' paychecks and requires annual elections to see if members want their unions to go on representing them. It also required the increased pensions and health care contributions, which Walker has said helped local governments and schools save enough money to deal with other cuts done to balance a state budget shortfall in 2011.

Walker's opponent for re-election, Democrat Mary Burke, supports the higher contributions. But while she backs restoring collective bargaining, Burke has not promised to work for the repeal of Act 10 if elected.

"I think it's only fair to have contributions to health care and pensions, but we also have to make sure that we are able to attract and keep great people in our public sector," Burke said.

Her spokesman Joe Zepecki said in a statement that the decision doesn't change the fact that Burke believes the election is about jobs.

Walker was forced to stand for recall in 2012, a move largely motivated out of anger over the union law. He won, becoming the first governor in U.S. history to defeat a recall.

The union law has been challenged on several fronts since it was introduced, but it's withstood them all.

HER OWN. AFTER YEARS OF PROTEST AND DEBATE. THE BATTLE OVER ACT 10 IS DONE. THE GOVERNOR IS CALLING IT A WIN FOR TAXPAYERS, WHILE UNION LEADERS SAY THEY ARE OUTRAGED. WISN-12 NEWS POLITICAL REPORTER KENT WAINSCOTT IS HEARING FROM ALL SIDES. IT BROUGHT THOUSANDS OF PROTESTERS TO THE STATE CAPITAL. THE STATE SUPREME COURT HAS LOCKED IN ACT 10, RULING THAT THE LAW IS CONSTITUTIONAL. THE POWERS TO RUN OUR SCHOOLS , LOCAL GOVERNMENTS, AND STATE GOVERNMENTS ARE IN THE HANDS OF HARD-WORKING TAXPAYERS. THE GOVERNOR SAID ACT AND HAS SAVED A DISTRICT SOME LOCAL ELEMENTS BILLIONS OF DOLLARS. THE HEAD OF MILWAUKEE'S TEACHERS UNION SAYS THE COURT'S RULING DEEPENS THE WOUNDS FOR PUBLIC WORKERS. I WAS NOT SURPRISED. I WAS OUTRAGED. I THINK THAT THIS RULING CONFIRMS THE ATTACKS ON WORKING PEOPLE, PUBLIC-SECTOR EMPLOYEES. AS THE BATTLE OVER ACT AND BEGAN THE MOMENT SCOTT WALKER INTRODUCED TO THREE YEARS AGO, LEADING TO PROTESTS AND ALSO RECALL ELECTIONS. THE FIGHT IS NOW DONE. THIS IS LIKELY THE END OF THE ROAD. THERE HAVE ALREADY BEEN TWO DIFFERENT COURT DECISIONS WHICH ALSO FOUND THAT TEND TO BE VALID. IS AN AFFIRMATION THAT WHAT WE DID IS LEGAL. THAT IS CONSTITUTIONAL. I HOPE IT IS A MOVE ON POINT. THE GOVERNORS THAT HE WILL MOVE AHEAD WITH ACTON. -- ACT 10. THE TEACHERS UNIONS AS PUBLIC EMPLOYEES WILL BE MORE MOTIVATED TO ORGANIZE AND HOPEFULLY ACHIEVE CHANGE IN THE UPCOMING ELECTION. THIS RAISES AN INTERESTING POINT. WHAT ROLE IT PLAYS THAT PLAY IN THE RACE FOR GOVERNOR. MARY BURKE WOULD CHIP AWAY AT AT 10. MARY BURKE WILL TELL VOTERS THAT SHE BELIEVES IN COLLECTIVE BARGAINING, BUT THERE IS MORE TO